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I have freckles genetically I guess (red/Auburn hair throughout my mom's side of the family)

I've never had anything negative said about them, or even thought to worry about them. I don't think it needs to be addressed really.

If you're worried about sun damage talk to her about taking care of your body, and ensure sunscreen is used. Otherwise, they are what they are, and bringing them up is unnecessary attention/worry. 🤷‍♀️

Freckles are often hereditary - so there's that.

And even if they are from sun exposure, some people are just more likely to have them than others. So while I think protecting from the sun is incredibly important, I don't think you can do anything specifically to pretect from freckles.

I agree with discussing how to safely protect our skin from the sun. But wouldn't dwell on the freckles.

Uhhhh, I had to google that. Freckles aren't a sign of sun damage, just sun exposure. Some people (like me) have genetic freckles, so I honestly wouldn't mention it. If she asks, I'd probably just say some people get darker all over when they're in the sun and others get dark in smaller spots. That's the basics of how it works anyway. My dad always joked that I spot tanned

I’ve never heard anything negative about freckles. I think bringing up freckles in a negative way such as it’s from sun damage/exposure, etc would cause more of a complex. My 6 year old is starting to get freckles and I just tell her that they are so cute.

You can’t really avoid freckles. Mine are hereditary, I’ve had them my whole life (face, arms, and legs) and I’m vigilant about sunscreen. Both of my LOs have face freckles already. My DD has type I skin (so palest of the pale) and hers become very apparent when she’s been in the sun, even with sunscreen. I wouldn’t make a big deal about them, but do try to incorporate sunscreen into a morning routine if you can. I don’t generally put sunscreen on my LOs for school (and it’s sunny every day here), but when I know they are going to be out for a specific event I will. I use my adult sunscreen on their faces since it isn’t goopy and they don’t complain as much, and regular sunscreen elsewhere.

This just came up the other day because DD learned at school that freckles come from the sun and are bad for you. She described someone as ‘’the kid with so many freckles.’’ So I was trying to explain hereditary freckles vs sun freckles and telling her how beautiful I think freckles can be. I have a number, although compared to some it’s not much. Both my kids have 1 or 2 and I’m sure will end up with more. They’ve never been sunburnt and I’m diligent about protecting them from *too much* sun, but I also embrace sun exposure in the winter and let them go without protection after 5 pm. Freckles are just going to happen.

@Corduroy: In the nicest way, were you going around thinking that people who have freckles as adults or children were negligent in taking care of their own skin? And that their freckles were the result of this negligence?

I have freckles in spots that never see sun so genetics plays a big role. My husbands and I are from irish descent and while we do our best with sun protection for ourselves and our kids I think freckles are inevitable. I'm fairly covered with freckles.

So i guess the ones to worry about are the age spots.

I have freckles and the only people who have ever said anything about them are a couple guys I have dated to remark they look cute. Unless she had a bunch and people started questioning her about having a skin issue I don think it warrants a discussion outside of properly naming the dots on her face as freckles.

I’ve hesitated clicking on this thread for a few days now because i don’t really know what to say or how to answer. I have red hair and genetically I have quite a few freckles, I don’t believe they are really sun damage. I’m quite careful in the sun. I 100% would not say anything to your daughter about them. I would just stress the importance of sun protection in terms of sunburns etc.

Oh wow, my kids and I get freckles by like...walking to the car from the building. It never occurred to me to bring it up. We practice overall sun safety so I wouldn't mention it at all in that context. Just a basic "hey, we use sunscreen to protect our skin!" has sufficed for our kids without going into specifics. A gajillion people have freckles so I'm not sure it's something my kids have ever even noticed.